Kickstarter is a platform for funding creative projects in which anyone can give money at any level of funding starting usually as low as $10. Funding at different levels gets you different perks, e.g. If the Kickstarter is for a book, a large donation makes you eligible for a signed copy.

In this comic, Black Hat is attempting to game the system by raising money to work on the perfect Kickstarter pitch. He appears to have gained no money, but has only started the scheme that day. The irony of the title text is that you do not need to be on any VIP list to have dibs on the pledge levels. Anyone can give any amount of money. That is the goal of Kickstarter and it has been wildly successful.

This has actually been done via an indiegogo campaign. There are a number of similarities to the comic (black hat, $500 vs $5,000 goal), so Baron von Husk may have gotten the idea from xkcd.

[A kickstarter page with zero donations, a target of $5,000 (and no money raised), and 90 days to go.]

[Black Hat has posted a video and a description of his project, the first lines of which are visible.]

Time was, anyone with a webcam and an idea could raise boatloads of cash on Kickstarter. But with increased popularity comes tougher competition. Now, to get support, you need a really standout video or compelling write-up.

I have an idea for a Kickstarter campaign that could raise millions, but I need your help to craft the perfect pitch.

Discussion

Also note the Droste effect of Blackhat's video: in the video he's holding a copy of the current webpage. 75.103.23.206 21:52, 7 December 2012 (UTC)

It's also worth noting that the kickstarter shown in the video has 2 days remaining and has raised a four digit figure of a 7 digit total (otherwise being a complete failure).86.141.223.90 22:43, 8 February 2013 (UTC)

It seems to me that in the video he has 2 days remaining, somewhere around 53,090 backers and has raised more than $8,000,000, out of an unreadable goal. 79.82.208.103 12:58, 2 June 2013 (UTC)

Could this be a scam? I don't know that much about kickstarter, but I know Blackhat, and scamming people seems like a common activity for him. 108.162.212.184 (talk) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

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